


Yuuri of the Dawn

by Bluwulf0248



Category: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-10
Updated: 2017-10-10
Packaged: 2019-01-15 15:13:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12323544
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bluwulf0248/pseuds/Bluwulf0248
Summary: What would change if Yona had been born a boy and had contact with her dragons much earlier on in life?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoy the story and please let me know if you do!

CHAPTER 1

 

"Did you hear? The young Prince struck his own father when he attempted to hug him again today,"  
"Poor King Il. First his beloved wife passes, and now his only child can't stand his presence."  
"Did you hear though, that apparently, the young Prince was present when she died? How awful. The poor child must be traumatized."  
"I know! I heard he has some awful wounds on his back!"   
"Well, I heard he was blind!"  
"Really?! What a poor boy,"

"Stop,"  
"Hm?" The three gossiping maids looked down to see said Prince standing in front of them. The six year old was hunched over slightly, small hands twisting the baggy fabric in anxiety and anger.   
"Stop talking about momma and papa like that!" He cried, little voice filled with anger.  
"Ah, Prince Yuuri! We apologize! We did not know..." the youngest maid began, waving her hands frantically.  
With a whimper, Yuuri cringed away, crouching on the ground like a frightened animal expecting a cruel hand.  
"Yuuri? Yuuri!" The King's voice came down the hall, loud in the sudden silence.  
"Y-your majesty!" The 3 maids stammered, quickly bowing as their king walked up to them quickly, an older man and young dark haired boy following close behind.  
"Papa," Yuuri whispered in a sad, pained voice.  
"Are you alright, Yuuri? You scared me, running off like that," the king said gently. He raised a hand to pat his son's unruly red mane of hair but froze and lowered it with a tiny sigh when his little boy flinched again.  
"Sorry, papa. Didn't mean to hit," Yuuri mumbled, not meeting his father's concerned gaze.   
"It's alright, I forgot myself," the king said soothingly. He gave a warning glance at the 3 maids who scurried off with hushed apologies.  
"Yuuri, I want you to meet someone. You remember General Mundoek from the wind tribe, right?" King Il asked quietly.  
"....yes," Yuuri whispered.  
"This is Hak, General Mundoek adopted him a few months ago. I'd like you to show him around, is that alright?"  
Before the boy could respond, he was interrupted by the dark haired boy his papa had said was Hak.  
"If this is about becoming his bodyguard you can forget it your chubbiness. I'm not interested in serving royalty," Hak said bluntly.  
"How dare you show such disrespect to the king and prince!" Mundoek shrieked dramatically as he used a paper fan that had appeared from nowhere to beat his young charge over the head.  
"Ouch! That hurts you stupid old geezer!" Hak yelled back, trying to cover his head.  
"Insolent brat! I've told you to call me grandpa!" Mundoek shouted.  
"Like hell I will!" Hak screeched, finally escaping his grasp.  
"Now now," king Il began, a sweatdrop rolling down his head as the two glared at each other.  
Hak blinked and glanced up when he heard a foreign giggle. Yuuri was smiling at their antics and giggling softly behind his sleeve as he tried to muffle the sound.   
Hak blinked again and rubbed his head sheepishly, two pink spots appearing on his cheeks.  
"I can show you my garden, if you want?" Yuuri asked in a quiet, timid voice.  
Hak rubbed his head again, trying to not stare when the younger boy glanced up to meet his gaze for the first time since they'd arrived.  
One brilliant purple eye met his shyly, the other covered in crisp, white bandages. Deep gashes just beginning to scab over covered a too thin face.  
He realized he'd been staring when that one eye filled with sadness and the other boy dropped his chin, messy crimson hair falling around his face to hide the injuries.  
Hak cringed, feeling guilty, before rushing to speak up.  
"Sure, I'd like to see it," he said, looking away with an embarrassed huff when Yuuri looked at him in poorly disguised hope and distrust.  
"You don't have to, if you don't want to. I'm ok on my own," Yuuri mumbled.  
Hak glared at him defensively. "I said I wanna, so I wanna! Geez!" He growled.  
Yuuri's eye brightened and he smiled hesitantly.  
"Is that ok, papa?" Yuuri asked, turning back to his previously forgotten father.  
"Of course, just stay in the castle, ok?" King Il said with a smile.  
Yuuri reached out as though to grab Hak's hand but froze before and grabbed his sleeve instead, giving it a gentle tug before letting it go and trotting off in the opposite direction.  
With one last glance behind him, Hak followed after the crimson haired boy.  
"Hey! Wait up!" Hak shouted, hurrying to catch up to the little Prince. Finally catching up, he glanced down at the boy walking by his side. Although he was only 2 years older than the Prince he was easily twice his size. If he hadn't been told before, he would have actually thought Yuuri was a girl.  
"Are you sure you're not a girl?" Hak finally asked, looking the other over dubiously.  
He was surprised when yuuri suddenly puffed his cheeks and stuck out his tongue.  
"Not you too! I'm a BOY! They always tease me too," Yuuri said with a pout.  
"Sorry, you just look girly with your hair and eye color and you're so tiny!" Hak said, raising his hands and stepping back a half step.  
"Shut up Guen! Nobody asked for your stinky opinion!" Yuuri snapped suddenly to the open air, glowering with his hands on his hips.  
"Heh? Who're you talking to?" Hak asked, feeling baffled.  
"Dummy Guen. He always teases me," Yuuri said with a little frown.  
"I....see...and who's that?" Hak asked after a pause.  
"He's one of my ghost dragons!" Yuuri said cheerfully.  
"Ghost....dragon?" Hak repeated slowly.   
"Oops," Yuuri mumbled, covering his mouth and looking at Hak with wide eyes.  
"Yuuuuri!"   
Yuuri looked up, face going even paler before he bolted with a terrified order to run.  
Confused but curious, Hak obeyed and ran after the Prince, keeping pace easily.  
"Instead a making fun, help us get away, dummy Guen! Or else I'll tell Abi you were being mean again!" Yuuri growled.  
Hak glanced at him from the corner of his eye but before he could ask Yuuri ducked down a dark hall and opened a seemingly random door, gesturing him to follow.  
Yuuri shut the door and ran to the far wall. Slipping his small hands around a small statue, he tugged at something hidden from sight. Hak stared as a section of wall moved, revealing a hidden room.   
"Come on! Before he finds us," Yuuri hissed, darting into the dark room.  
Hak just managed to enter the room before the wall slid back into place.  
Hak blinked, letting his eyes adjust to the dark. To his surprise, there were little drafts of light peeking through the walls.   
"Who're we hiding from?" Hak asked.  
Yuuri hushed him and they both froze when the door to the room opened.   
"Huh? I wonder where she went?" A young boy with blonde hair and blue eyes entered the room, looking around in confusion.  
Hak felt a smirk stretch across his face when Yuuri turned red.  
"Maybe I had the wrong room," the boy said, sounding dejected.   
They stayed silent until he left the room. Once the door shut Hak opened his mouth to speak but fell silent when Yuuri shook his head at him.   
After several minutes Yuuri finally relaxed and slumped against the wall with a sigh.  
"Soo, who was that?" Hak asked, crouching next to the prince.  
"My cousin, Soo-won. He won't leave me alone! He keeps calling me princess and trying to hug me! I hate him," Yuuri said, shuddering.  
"Have you told him not to hug you?" Hak asked, raising his eyebrows.  
Yuuri glanced down, small hands clenching into fists.  
"I did, once. He just looked sad and tried to hug me again," Yuuri explained.  
Hak decided to let that subject drop for the moment.   
"So, how long do we have to stay hidden here?" He asked instead.  
"Oh! It should be ok now, Guen said he's gone," Yuuri said, climbing to his feet and walking to a different wall than the one they'd come in from.  
He pushed on a panel which opened to a dark and cobwebby passage.  
"You coming?" He asked, turning back to look at Hak.   
With a sigh, Hak nodded and followed him into the darkness.  
After walking for a few minutes, Hak spoke up.  
"Aren't you scared? It's super dark in here. And how did you know these were here anyways?" He asked, shuddering as he felt something skitter over his foot.  
"Abi's here now, and he can see really good in the dark, so I'm not scared. And my dragons showed them to me. The whole castle is built over all these old passages. Everyone forgot about them, so they aren't used by anyone.   
"Yuuri!" Hak exclaimed, stopping in his tracks and glaring at the crimson haired boy when he looked over his shoulder at him in surprise.  
"What?" Yuuri asked, looking confused and just a little frightened.  
Taking a deep breath, Hak calmed down, feeling bad for scaring the already timid boy.  
"Sorry for yelling," Hak mumbled the apology before continuing " but you keep mentioning dragons, and you say these unknown people told you about all these hidden places. It sounds dangerous! Does the king know?" Hak asked sharply.  
Yuuri looked down. "I...dont think papa knows, not exactly. He doesn't know about the hidden passages, for sure or that my older dragons are still following me, but I think he might suspect," Yuuri said softly.  
"Suspect what?" Hak asked, feeling uneasy.  
"Umm," Yuuri hedged, looking away and wringing his hands anxiously.  
"If ya don't wanna tell, I won't make you, but I don't want you to get hurt prince. That's all," Hak said, feeling his cheeks heat in embarrassment at the girly words he was saying.  
"......why?"   
Hak glanced up, surprised at the little voice and it's question.  
"Why what?" He asked, scratching his head.  
"Why do you care? You don't know me, we just met today," Yuuri said, looking at him hard.  
"I don't know, you just seem.....too special, or important I guess? I can't explain it. I just feel responsible for keeping you safe," Hak muttered, looking away.  
Yuuri looked down, cheeks warming from the kind words.   
"Ah! Wait here a moment, kay?" Yuuri exclaimed, brightening.   
Before he could argue, Yuuri had exited through another secret door leaving Hak alone in the dark.  
A few minutes later, yuuri was back in the passage with a proud little smile on his face and an old leather bound book in his hands.  
"Here! This is for you!" Yuuri said, thrusting the old book into his hands.  
"What is it?" Hak asked, going to unwrap it.  
"No! Open it when you go home. When you finish, then come see me again, kay?" Yuuri said in a rush, stopping him from opening it.  
Hak looked at him in suspicion but relented after a moment and tucked the small book into his tunic.  
"Can we get out of here? It creeps me out a little," Hak said, suppressing a shiver when something with far too many legs crawled over his hand and he backed into another cobweb.  
"Yeah, the exits up ahead," Yuuri said, sounding sheepish.  
After a few minutes they came to an old stairway with a door at the top.   
"Abi says it's ok to leave, and no one's around to see us," Yuuri said after pausing for a moment at the door.  
"Again with this Abi person," Hak grumbled under his breath as he helped the prince push the door open. They stumbled out into a flower garden. To his surprise, the sun was already setting. They'd been in the passages for a few hours. He turned to see the door close, immediately blending into the side of the hilltop. The garden area looked more like a meadow than a garden, he thought as he looked around in awe.  
"It's pretty here, right?" Yuuri asked as he walked towards the only tree in the area. A massive willow, bark a strange silver in the dusk.   
Hak nodded silently as he followed Yuuri, brushing the long hanging branches out of the way carefully.  
Inside the little haven the hanging branches made, was a makeshift futon, some books, and an old looking little red dragon plushie.  
"This was my and mama's special hiding spot," Yuuri said in a soft sad voice.  
"It's nice," Hak said, suddenly feeling like he was intruding.  
"It's ok,if I didn't want you to know, I wouldn't have shown you this place. I trust you," Yuuri said, smiling at him in that way that both terrified him and made him want to cry.  
"Huh? What's wrong?" Yuuri asked, confused as Hak looked at him with a strange expression.  
"Thank you, prince," he whispered.  
"Eh? What for?" Yuuri asked, looking totally baffled.  
Hak just laughed and flopped down on his back in the soft grass, ignoring the other boy when he pouted and asked repeatedly what his problem was.  
"I promise to keep you safe, so you'll always smile," Hak promised himself.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope everyone who's reading this enjoys chapter 2! If you like it, let me know!

CHAPTER 2

 

"He seems like a nice boy, yuuri," Abi said softly from where he was standing.   
Yuuri looked up into his beautiful gold eyes with a tiny smile.  
"Yes, are you sure it was ok to give him King Hiryuu's diary though," Yuuri asked, turning back to watch as Hak rode off down the road by his grandfather's side. They were headed back to Fuuga and wanted to get some travel in before it became too dark to travel.  
"I'm sure it'll be fine. He has a kind heart, that one," Abi responded.  
"I wish he could have spent the night though," Yuuri said dejectedly.  
Guen thought of several embarrassing jokes he could make, but held his tongue, knowing the severe nightmares the little prince suffered from.  
"Maybe he'll stay longer next time, prince Yuuri!" Shu-ten said, appearing suddenly.  
"Shu you scared me!" Yuuri exclaimed.  
"Sorry," he apologized contritely.  
"I hope he comes back though," Yuuri sighed, turning and heading to his room, the three dragon warriors floating along behind him.  
Later that night, when the whole castle had fallen asleep, the 3 dragon warriors watched helplessly as their prince twisted in his bedding, caught in yet another nightmare.   
They tensed when a panel of the wall suddenly wiggled and was removed.  
"Intruders?" Guen said, leaning forward with narrowed eyes.  
"No, it's Zeno," Abi said, shock coloring his tone.  
They watched as their fourth and final brother snuck into the room. His once golden hair was dull from dirt and tangled.  
The yellow dragon crept over to his young master and looked down at the whimpering boy sadly before crumbling to his knees. Tears began to stream down his cheeks.  
"Zeno is sorry for being so late miss," he whispered.  
He flinched when a small hand brushed his cheek, wiping the tears away. He looked up, his wide and teary eyes meeting the sleep fogged prince's.  
"I remember you, you saved me. I thought you were hurt. I saw the bad men stab you lots," Yuuri whispered, still petting zeno's cheek almost absentmindedly in comfort.  
"Zeno heals fast, but zeno couldn't save the miss's mum, zeno is so very very sorry," zeno whispered back, sorrow choking up his voice.  
Zeno felt more tears flood down his cheeks when the child wrapped her small arms around his neck tightly.  
"It's ok, I don't blame you. Thank you for saving me, zeno," Yuuri whispered through his own tears.  
"Poor zeno. King hiryuu would cry, seeing his yellow dragon so sad," Abi murmured sadly.  
"Zeno, is my yellow dragon?" Yuuri whispered.  
"What?" Zeno asked, unsure if the other had been speaking to him.  
"Nothing," Yuuri finally answered, giving a huge yawn unexpectedly.  
"Miss is tired, zeno is sorry. He will let you sleep, zeno just wanted to make sure you were ok," zeno said, trying to make himself relax his arms.  
"Stay? The nightmares will be better if you stay. Please?" Yuuri pleaded, clinging to his sleeve.  
"Zeno will stay for a bit," zeno relented, he also wanted to keep the young child in his sights for a bit. He was still terrified he'd wake up and realize that it'd all been a dream and he'd been to late to save his new master.  
Yuuri sat up suddenly with a small gasp, looking around his dark bedroom.   
"Was that just a dream?" he wondered quietly, but the spot beside him was arranged like a little nest, as though someone had been resting beside him, the spot still faintly warm. Nestled into the covers was a little yellow dragon stuffed animal.   
"Ouryuu left about 15 minutes ago," Guen said softly from the corner of the room he was currently occupying.  
"Ouryuu...the yellow dragon. Right?" Yuuri asked hesitantly, still learning his history.  
"Yep. Poor Zeno, he's been alone a long time. I guess we know why King Hiryuu looked so sad when he looked at Zeno sometimes," shu-ten said, looking sad as well.  
"What do you mean?" Yuuri asked.  
"Zeno's an original dragon kiddo. He was....is...our brother, who protected and fought by king Hiryuu's side," shu-ten responded.  
"But that was....a really, really ling time ago!" Yuuri exclaimed after trying to figure out the exact amount of years, but failing, he struggled in mathematics, it's not his fault!  
"2,000 years. Give or take a year," Guen agreed.  
"Poor Zeno. We all wondered where he could have ended up, because he never came to greet us in the heavens, it's the original reason we finally returned to the earth. But our spirits are confined to a three mile radius around you, little prince," Abi said, his gold eyes sparkling in sadness.  
"Don't cry abi," Yuuri pleaded, even as his own eyes teared up at just how overwhelmingly lonely Zeno must be.  
"Yuuri?! Are you awake?" Yuuri jumped when there was a light knock on the door. Min-su, the servant assigned to him called.  
"Y-yes," Yuuri called back, trying to wipe away his tears.  
Min-su frowned when he walked in and saw tear stains on the little prince's cheeks.  
"Prince Yuuri, are you alright?" He asked, concerned.  
"I'm ok, just had a sad dream," Yuuri whispered.  
"Ah, I'm sorry to hear that. Was it about your mother again?" Min-su asked kindly.  
Min-su was fourteen years old to his six, but he'd been caring for Yuuri for as long as he could remember and there was no one, alive at least, that he trusted more.  
"No, not this time. It was about my Ouryuu. He was sad and all alone. Everyone he loved left him behind," Yuuri admitted a partial truth, he didn't think min-su, as understanding as he was, would be very understanding of a stranger breaking into his room late at night.  
"You've been dreaming of them a lot lately, haven't you, little prince?" Min-su said, offering him a small smile as he went to open the shades.  
"Yes," Yuuri said simply, getting to his feet as Min-su offered him a light robe to use after he had bathed.  
Yuuri tried to fight down the urge to hide his wounds from his friend, but finally, with slumped shoulders and a dejected voice, asked the other boy to turn away while he bathed.  
With a gentle, understanding smile, min-su turned away, allowing him the momentary closure he was needing.  
"So, was this Ouryuu of yours the old ones, or one of the new?" Min-su asked, settling in to wait.  
"Both. He was the old one, but he's also mine," Yuuri responded.  
"Eh? How does that work?" Min-su asked, confused.  
"Ouryuu is the one with an unbreakable body," was all Yuuri said, reciting it as though he'd read it from a textbook.  
"I'm all done," Yuuri added a few moments later, interrupting min-su' s train of thought.  
"That's good," he said, turning around and giving the young boy a smile automatically.  
He knelt down to help tie the sash, ignoring the little flinch Yuuri couldn't stop, as well as his small body tensing. Finishing, he patted the boy on the hand and stood up again.  
"Ok then. You need to get ready because the doctor is coming again to check your wounds and see how your eye is doing," min-su told the other boy as he followed him back into his room.  
"Why bother? It's not going to work again, everyone says so, and I don't like the doctor, he smells funny and always touches to hard," Yuuri complained, sitting back down on his futon.  
"He smells different because of his medicines he makes, and in order to help your wounds heal, he has to touch you, prince," min-su said, amused, as he lays out the prince's clothing for that day.  
"I don't like it though," Yuuri grumbled.  
"I'm sure you will survive," min-su said.

 

Hak entered Hiryuu castle behind his adoptive grandfather, wondering if it would be overly rude to run off to find the prince. He had A LOT of questions.  
"General Mundoek! Hak!" King Il greeted with a strained smile.   
"Is something wrong?" Hak asked bluntly, seeing the stress on the normally collected and carefree king's face.  
"Ah, we just had some unsurprising, but discouraging news and Yuuri isn't handling it very well. He's run off again and no one's been able to find him. The only thing keeping my any semblance of calm right now, is that I know he hasn't left the castle, because one of the guards would have seen," the king explained.  
"Do you want me to go looking for him? I might have better luck finding him?" Hak offered.  
"We've searched everywhere, but any assistance is more than welcome," the king answered.  
Hak set off down the hall at a trot. After searching for a bit he finally found the room with the fake back wall, and after a bit of struggle, managed to get it open.  
He entered the hidden space, taking care to make sure the door behind him was closed before proceeding to enter the hallway. He started walking slowly, counting the corners as he passed them, until he finally reached the one he needed and made a left. He continued walking, heading for the spot he remembered from the last time they'd been in the passages. Yuuri had led them thru an old room that was surprisingly clean and he'd noticed a handful of books and candles around the room, blankets and pillows arranged neatly in the corner making a little nest. When he'd asked the prince about it, he'd told him it was his special secret spot.  
As he neared the room he realized that the door was open slightly and he could hear the prince crying.  
"I've been gone less than a month! How'd he get into trouble in that amount of time?!" Hak asked himself, beginning to move quicker as worry filled him.  
He pushed the door open the rest of the way and froze as his eyes landed on the prince, sobbing hysterically as an unknown man a few years older than him held on to him tightly.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know if you enjoy it!

Chapter 3

 

Hak stared at the man for a few seconds poised to interfere and come to the other boy's rescue before his eyes took in the entire scene.  
He saw how the prince was alternating between struggling as if to escape and clinging to the other. He saw how the stranger seemed to curl around the small prince protectively even as he tried to offer comfort. And finally he heard the distressed sounds the other boy was making as though the prince's tears were a source of pain for him.  
"Don't cry Miss, you will make zeno cry to and zeno doesn't want that," the other boy nearly pleaded, arms tightening around the boy.  
"And if you keep crying you're going to make Seiryuu, hakryuu, and ryokuryuu cry too," the other boy said, almost frantically.  
It was at this point that Hak decided to make his presence known.  
"Prince yuuri?" He said aloud, trying to get his attention without frightening the prince.  
He was not expecting the other boy's reaction. With a snarl the other boy through himself forward and before Hak could blink he found himself on the hard ground, being held down by the other boy who was glaring down at him with such protective fury that he instinctively knew.  
"Um, Prince? Get your dragon under control before he rips my throat out please," Hak called to the other boy, taking great care to remain as still and unthreatening as possible.  
"Hak?" Yuuri asked in disbelief, crawling forward hesitantly.  
"One and only," Hak snarked back.  
"Zeno. It's ok, he's my friend, you can let him up, he won't hurt me," Yuuri said, tugging on the other's sleeve gently.  
"If you're sure," zeno said hesitantly, relaxing his grip slightly.  
"I'm sure," Yuuri said.  
Zeno released him and he sat up slowly, rubbing his head where he'd hit it on the ground. He watched as zeno positioned himself nearly in front of Yuuri protectively.  
"What are you doing here hak?" Yuuri asked him, twisting his fingers into the blankets anxiously.  
"I think those are my lines! I show up after a month just to be told by your dad that you've gone missing! Do you have any idea how worried he is about you? I told him I'd try and find you, since he doesn't know about the passages," Hak explained.  
"Sorry," Yuuri mumbled guiltily.  
"So why were you crying like a little girl? And who is your new friend?" Hak asked in a teasing voice, trying to cheer the other up.  
"Actually, I heard him mention seiryuu, hakuryuu, and ryokuryuu so I guess that leaves ouryuu right?" Hak said, smirking when both boys turned to stare at him.  
"You read the book I gave you," Yuuri said in a little voice.  
"Yep," Hak answered.  
"And you believe me?" Yuuri asked, looking at him hopefully.  
"I guess. I've got lots of questions though. But first, you're gonna tell me why you were crying so much, then you're gonna let your dad know you're ok, I'm spending the night, so we should have a sleepover, the three of us," Hak said, eyeing the still silent boy who was so very protective of the prince.  
Zeno hesitated, "Zeno doesn't know if that's a good idea," he said, sounding uncertain.  
"Please, Zeno? I have something for you anyways," Yuuri pleaded.  
"Zeno guesses he can stay then," zeno said.  
"So, why were you crying?" Hak asked Yuuri.  
"The palace doctor told everyone today that my eye wouldn't ever work again," Yuuri admitted in a tiny voice.  
"Okay??" Hak said slowly, not entirely sure why Yuuri was so upset.  
"He wants to take it out, cuz it's ugly. It's not hurting me having it in, but he said it would make me look funny with a blank eye, I told papa what he said, but I don't think papa believed me. He wants the doctor to take it out too, I don't want that. I don't want anymore hurt, but what if papa doesn't like me anymore because my eye is ugly?" Yuuri hiccups, starting to cry again.  
"That doctor is just dumb. Let me see, there's no way your eyes could ever be not pretty, no matter what color they are," Hak said, reaching forward and nudging the other boy's face up so that they made proper eye contact for the first time since they'd met.  
That one eye he remembered so well was looking at him, wide and startled, still that unique purple color and the other... The other eye was a light lavender color. Blindness dulling the color. It was different but...  
"Pretty. Just like I said. I like it," Hak said aloud, patting the other boy on the head.  
Yuuri was so startled he didn't even flinch away, just continued to stare at the other boy with wide eyes, who began to blush a bright red at the attention.  
Hak yelped when he suddenly found himself with an armful of sobbing prince and looked up to see zeno watching him with a tiny smile, but such a lonely look in his eyes.  
Later that night, Hak flopped down into the grass underneath the willow tree with a huff and rubbed his eyes.  
"You royalty people are ridiculous," he groaned.  
It'd taken all afternoon to convince the King that Yuuri was fine, and he hadn't been kidnapped. Then it'd taken most of the evening and several meltdowns on yuuri's side to convince the King that his doctor was a bastard and should be fired immediately. He'd felt a pair of eyes burning into his back each time Yuuri had begun to cry, and he was completely exhausted.  
"Mister looks pretty tired,"   
Hak was too tired to jump and simply opened his eyes to see Zeno looking down at him from one of the sturdy branches of the tree.  
He waved a hand half heartedly and closed his eyes again.  
When zeno spoke again, it was from right next to him.  
"Zeno wants to say thanks to you for helping the miss when zeno couldn't," zeno said quietly.  
With a little groan Hak sat up and slumped back against the trunk of the tree.  
"I read that book that Yuuri gave me. It was a journal written by king hiryuu," Hak said softly.  
Zeno looked up sharply, his blue eyes widening a bit in surprise.  
"Hiryuu...kept a journal?" He whispered.  
"Yeah. He talked all about the four dragon warriors who helped him protect this land," Hak said.  
He smiled a little, "I'm jealous of Yuuri, you know? They three original dragons sounded awesome. I wish I could have met them," Hak said, eyeing the silent zeno from the corner of his eye, "But then, I guess, you would know first hand, wouldn't you?" He asked.  
Hak saw zeno's hands clench in his shirt and smiled sadly.  
"When I first read about the power of the Ouryuu, I was confused. I don't think king Hiryuu knew exactly what you're power was right away either. He really loved all of you, you know? You're all he'd talk about in his entries. It was shu-ten and Guen did this again today, Abi let the birds in the castle again, zeno is always keeping the peace, poor zeno. But my dragons are truly adorable..." Hak told zeno, grinning a little as zeno's cheeks flushed red.  
"But, then there was this one entry, you could tell the king had been crying. He wrote about you and the hard and lonely path you had ahead of you. I didn't get what he was meaning, but seeing you here now, I guess I get why he was so upset that day," Hak glanced at Zeno again with a sad smile.  
"You've been alone for a while, huh?" He said.  
"It....has been a while," zeno admitted softly.  
"Zeno! Hak!" Yuuri called, appearing from the side of the hill, a bag in his arms.  
"What took so long?" Hak called, dropping their previous topic for the moment to address his prince.  
"I had to get a few things from my room, then dodge my guards that papa keeps trying to stick on me," Yuuri answered, slightly out of breath.  
He sat down in the grass beside them and tipped the bag upside down.  
"I had to sneak into mama's closet a few times to get the right fabric, and Min-su helped me with the stitches and notes, but I'm finally finished!" Yuuri said proudly.  
On the ground were four little red dragons, with messy stitching and a patchwork of red material.  
"What is this?" Zeno asked, eyes wide.  
"I want zeno to bring these to the other dragons! So they'll know how special they are to me and I can't wait to meet them!" Yuuri explained with a smile.  
"But...why?" Zeno asked helplessly.  
"Sometimes I have dreams about them. I think they must feel lonely. They don't have zeno or Hak to talk to, so I decided to give them a present so they wouldn't be so sad," Yuuri explained.  
"please bring these to them, zeno," Yuuri pleaded.  
"If you want zeno to, then zeno will," zeno finally said.  
"Thank you, zeno!" Yuuri said, smiling at him happily before picking up one of the dragons with yellow button eyes and held it out to the yellow haired boy.  
"This one's for you," Yuuri said.  
Zeno reached out slowly and took the stuffed animal. There was a little piece of paper around it's neck, and he fingered it before tucking it into his coat to read it later.

Zeno blew on his hands to warm them in the chilly morning air. He glanced down at the little dragon in his lap, yellow button eyes reflecting in the sunlight filtering through the leaves of the tree branch above him.  
He hesitated, fingering the little piece of paper around the dragon's neck but he eventually slips it free and unwraps it.  
With a little gasp, he covers his mouth as tears fill his eyes and spill down his cheeks.

This is for you! When you feel lonely just hug this dragon and remember how special you are to me!   
Yuuri

Zeno hugged the little red dragon tightly to his chest and wept quietly.  
After a few minutes he composed himself and carefully tucked his dragon away.  
"Hakuryuu village is closest, but it's still a two week long journey, so Zeno better get started, or else he'll be traveling in the snow!" He said, jumping down from the tree.

"Zeno didn't think this through very well, he's thinking," zeno said dryly to himself from where he was clinging to a tree branch, just high enough up the tree that the Hakuryuu clan member's archers were unable to hit him with their arrows.  
"Trespasser! Come down and face your judgement!" One of the archers shouted.  
"Zeno will stay here, where zeno won't get impaled with arrows!" Zeno called back.  
"Zeno just wants to speak to Hakuryuu!" Zeno added as a second thought.  
"The hakuryuu is under our sacred protection! If you have learned of this village, then we have no choice but to eradicate you to protect him!" Another man shouted.  
Zeno yelped and clung tighter to the branch as another arrow was fired.  
"Ouryuu is very very hard to kill! If you would just have Hakuryuu come, then zeno can give him his present and leave! That's all zeno wants, hakuryuu is very troublesome, next time little miss wants to visit her dragons, she can go herself," zeno called to the people on the ground before mumbling the last part to himself grumpily.  
"Wait! I know him!" A little boy came pushing thru the crowd, smiling excitedly.  
"Lord Hakuryuu! What are you doing Here! You must go back, it's not safe," one of the men said, grabbing onto the little boy's shoulder.  
"That's the Ouryuu though! Let him down Now! You think I wouldn't recognize another dragon brother?" The little boy said, hands on his hips.  
"A-ah, of course, lord Hakuryuu, if you're certain," the man said.  
At the little boy's firm nod the archers lowered their bows and stepped back.  
"Ah! Finally!" Zeno said, scrambling down the tree with ease.  
"Zeno still has a long journey, so Zeno will be quick," the yellow haired boy said.  
Pulling out a little red dragon with white button eyes he thrust it into the little white haired boy's arms.  
"This is for you! Now zeno have to get going, but he'll see you some other time," zeno said to him, waving cheerfully as he trotted off.  
The other boy looked up to thank him but blinked when he realized that the yellow haired boy had disappeared.


End file.
